Sayōnara
by Sasuke-n-Tomatoes
Summary: "Please, don't kiss me… If you do…" she looked at him with her tear-stained cheeks, "It will only make me miss you more." SasuSaku, Canonverse.


**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto and its characters.

 **Title:** Sayōnara

 **Summary:** "Please, don't kiss me… If you do…" she looked at him with her tear-stained cheeks, "It will only make me miss you more." SasuSaku, Canonverse

 **Prompt:** Sasuke Week Day 7 – Free choice

 **Rating:** T

 **Notes:** I am even later than Kakashi… oh well. Enjoy!

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 _~Goodbye, my love~_

 _~I can't hide what has come~_

 _~I have to go and leave you alone~_

 _~But always know that I love you so~_

– _Avril Lavigne_

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 _Sayōnara_

He had several objects spread across his bed as he was packing for his soon-to-be journey – he was trying to decipher which items he should take. He would definitely need at least one more spare of clothes – because wearing the same clothes every day is not an option and would not be hygienic. As for weapons, he already had his kusanagi, although some kunai knives and shuriken stars could get useful, so he had tossed them in for an extra measure. _That would do._

He then glanced at two more items in his hand – one was a recent picture of his four-year old daughter. She had an adorable grin plastered on her face and her coal eyes shone with mirth as she was hugging a plush bunny to her chest. She looked very _happy_. The sight of her happiness brought joy to him as well – her smile could light up his whole world as cheesy as it sounded. He wondered if she would stay the same after he left and he frowned at the thought. He sighed lightly and placed the photo on his set of clothes. Hopefully, she will.

His eyes shifted to another picture in his hand and a ghost of smile crawled on his face. His own face stared back at him with no hint of fury or coldness – it was filled with content and satisfaction and there was soft smile evident on his face. His attention shifted to the arm that was wrapped around a pink haired woman's – his wife's – waist who was smiling brightly and her face filled with joy and sincerity. In her hands laid a small bundle of joy deep asleep with a thumb in their mouth. He recalled this picture being taken a few days after their daughter had been born – they were truly happy back then.

Of course, their happiness didn't end there. He and his wife couldn't have been more excited ( _his wife was practically dancing with joy and he was staring at her amused_ ) when their little girl spoke her first words "papa" and "mama" or when she took her first steps on her own. These were the moments they cherished the most – some might think they are not that important, however, their happiness couldn't even be explained because they were _that_ happy. Until now.

He was leaving. A while ago he and his wife had attended a kage meeting along with their ex-teammate and best friend – who was now the current hokage – and he himself had investigated and found out there was a threat created by Kaguya somewhere out there looming that could not only harm the five nations but also the whole shinobi world. He had opted to go on this mission and stop this threat himself – his best friend had also insisted on going, however he shot that offer down since he needed to stay and protect the village as the hokage. And now, here he was packing his belongings for the mission.

But it wasn't like he wanted to go to this mission – he was only doing this for the sake of the shinobi world and its future ( _"The future ought to stay bright. Am I wrong?" he spoke to the rest of the kages in the room_ ). And not just for the whole shinobi world… but also for _his_ family. If this threat got out of hand and came to harm his family, he didn't know what he would do then. He had already lost his family _twice_ and he didn't want to face the same pain and suffering ever again. His beloved wife and little girl were too precious to him – had anything happen to the both of them, he would feel like he had lost of a part of himself and his life. He had sworn to protect them, so he would do anything for them to be safe.

However, he was sacrificing his own happiness by doing so… he was going to be alone on this journey for a long time. His wife was really heartbroken when she found out that the mission would take a long time to complete – not only did she want him to be there with them as a husband and a father, but she also didn't want to him to be alone anymore and be together with his loved ones. Hadn't he suffered enough? It too killed him that he was leaving his family – he was leaving his lover and little girl behind. He would most likely miss his daughter growing up and the moments his family would share without him. He would _kill_ to be there with them. He gritted his teeth and tossed the other photo next to his belongings. He _hated_ this.

"Sasuke-kun?" a quiet voice interrupted his musings and he turned around to see his wife standing by their bedroom door. Her long pink hair was loose as it cascaded down her back in light waves and she looked just… _beautiful_. Even when she was wearing a simple dress together with an apron, he still found her stunning. He saw her eyes were cast down and wondered quietly why she wasn't looking at him. He answered anyway.

"Sakura," he stared at her and waited for her to say something. There was a long awkward silence between them and Sasuke found that he didn't like it. He watched as Sakura's attention shifted to the equipment he was packing and quietly inquired, "Is that all you are taking?"

He glanced behind himself and responded, "Yes."

Then she finally looked at him with those shimmering eyes of her and he saw deep _sadness_ and _longing_ in them. The corners of her mouth were downwards, and her eyebrows were pushed up together and it looked like as if she was going to cry. He furrowed his eyebrows in concern and his eyes softened. He slowly made his way over to his wife and looked into her eyes, gently asking, "Sakura, are you alright?"

Her eyes crinkled at the edges and her eyebrows were pushed up even more while the corners of her mouth were completely slant downward and she let out quiet sob, "Sasuke-kun, I don't want you to leave…"

He looked at her in alarm and worry, "Sakura–"

He was cut off when her arms enveloped him in a hug and squeezed him tightly, making him lose his breath. Although Sakura was known for hugging very hand and painfully, he didn't really mind it because he knew she was putting all her love into it. Her head was buried into his chest (he was at least a head taller than her) and sobbed quietly, "Sasuke-kun… I love you so much!"

He watched as the woman he loved cried and his felt his heart shatter in tiny peaces. He hated that he was the reason of her tears and he had vowed not to make her cry ever again. It seemed he failed once again. He sighed and wrapped one arm around his wife's waist while using the other one to lift her chin up. "Don't cry," he ordered quietly while wiping her tears away with his thumb. He hated when she shed tears of sadness and heartbreak – he wanted her to shed them of happiness and bliss.

She sniffled silently and choked out: "I am sorry, I didn't mean to start crying… I just…"

He shook his head and spoke gently, "It's alright."

His hands cupped her face and leaned in to kiss her longingly on her lips and she responded eagerly to his kiss, letting out a quiet moan. He knew that she enjoyed when he was being gentle with her – she has always liked it that way, even during their lovemaking. His tongue then prodded her to part her lips and she complied, opening her mouth. He slipped it into her mouth and explored every single crevice while she let out moans and sobs at the same time.

Since he was leaving, he needed to kiss her one last time sensually before his departure. He didn't know how long his mission would take but obviously it was going to take longer than a few weeks. Heck, it could even take longer than a few months. It was going to last at least a few years to find the traces of Kaguya, if not many.

They parted away from each other after a few moments and were taking deep breathes after their kissing. Sasuke was the first one to wake up from his reverie and he looked at his wife whose cheeks were deeply flushed from their make out. However, tears were coating her cheeks as well. She choked out, "Sasuke-kun…"

He raised his palm to her face and wiped away her tears and bent down to kiss her passionately once more. She, however, avoided him, "Please, don't kiss me."

"Sakura…" he spoke her name gently, but she shook her head.

"Sasuke-kun, please… no. I don't want to you to kiss me anymore. If you do…" she looked at him with her tear-stained cheeks, "It will only make me miss you more."

He opened his mouth to object but then realised she was right. If they shared more kisses, he would only miss her, if not more. But still… he wanted to share some more. Instead of kissing her lips though, he pressed his mouth against her forehead, right on her seal. He heard her inhale in surprise and breathed, "Sasuke-kun..."

He took his lips away and pressed his forehead against hers, "Sakura…"

"Sasuke-kun?" she craned her head to look at him.

"I love you," he spoke.

"Sasuke-kun…" she mumbled. He was about to lean in for another kiss, but a small voice interrupted them.

"Mama? Papa?"

Both of them parted away from each other – although his wife's hands lingered on his chest for the moment – and looked at their four-year old daughter who was rubbing sleep out of her eyes with one hand while holding the plush bunny from the picture with the other. Both of them shared a look before Sakura squatted down to pick up their daughter.

"What's going on?" Sarada inquired quietly while yawning lightly.

His wife bit her lip while looking at him helplessly – she didn't know what to say to their daughter – so he spoke instead, "I am leaving on a mission, Sarada."

"On a mission?" She looked at him curiously, "Are you going to make the world a better place again?"

He pressed his lips in a thin line and looked down, "You can say that."

"Cool," she said with a tired smile while pressing her plush bunny against her cheek.

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"Here you go," she handed him a box of his favourite bento, provided with some tomatoes.

The three of them stood by the village gates, Sakura hugging Sarada to her chest who had drowsed off not too long ago and Sasuke standing in front of them. Usually, when he would leave on a mission, his wife would have a bright smile on her face and wish him good luck, before handing a homemade bento, and he would always give her a soft smirk and hug her before leaving. That did not seem to be the case this time though. He frowned when he saw sorrow on her face and pressed his lips together in a thin line.

She sighed quietly before speaking, "Well… I guess this is goodbye." Her eyes were cast down and she was trying not to let her tears fall. He knew she didn't want him to feel guilty, but it was too late – the guilt had been eating him away ever since he accepted this assignment.

He also let out a sigh as he made his way towards them and enveloped both of his girls in a hug. None of them said anything, they just stood there quietly with Sasuke's arms wrapped around Sakura and Sarada. His love finally murmured after a while, "I love you."

He buried his nose into her long pink hair, inhaling her cherry blossom scent, and murmured back, "I love you, too." He pressed a soft kiss against her temple while running his hand down her cheek, "I love both of you."

"I love you, too… papa," came a murmur from his little girl. Surprise overcame him, and he released his wife to look at their daughter. Although she was sound asleep, she had a slight smile on her face and she seemed content at the moment. He felt now even more terrible for leaving – he would miss many years out of his daughter's life and she would probably never forgive him for that. Heck, he wouldn't forgive himself either. But he knew he had to go – just like his little one said, he is going to make the world a better place.

He raised his hand and poked his wife on her forehead, "I will see both of you soon. I promise." He allowed a smile to appear on his face – it was a bitter and melancholic smile but a smile nonetheless. He didn't want to part away from his loved ones with a frown on his face.

His wife stared at him for a moment before a soft grin appeared on her face, "We will be waiting."

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" _Mama… where's daddy?"_

" _He's off on a very important mission. When it's over, he'll come home."_

…

" _Does papa… not care about me and you, mama?"_

" _ **What?**_ _Of course, he does...!"_

" _Then why won't he come home to us?"_

"… _Sarada… You and I are very precious to your papa… That's exactly why he can't come home now. I don't think you are able to understand it now… But the day will come when you do."_

 _end_

Well… I don't know how to feel about this. Honestly, it feels a little rushed. But I have been writing this fic for way too long (a month is a long time) so I feel like it's time to upload it. I guess this is also a Sasuke Week entrance… who am I kidding, I am too late. Bleh. I will probably revise this one day and edit it too.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this trash. Please favourite and review. Thank you for reading. :)

-Sasuke-n-Tomatoes


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